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Haasts Bluff store back in community control

The Registrar of Indigenous Corporations, Anthony Beven, has today announced the end of the special administration of the Kanparrka Store Aboriginal Corporation.

Established in 2011, the corporation owns and operates the Kanparrka Store in the community of Ikuntji, also known as Haasts Bluff. The community is located about 250 km west of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory.

On 21 December 2016 the Registrar, at the request of the corporation’s directors, appointed special administrators to the corporation.

‘Despite their significant efforts and passion for the Kanparrka Store, the former directors called my office when they were unable to access information about their store’s financial performance,’ Mr Beven said. ‘Corporations delivering services in remote communities, especially those supplying food, already face challenges in their operations. Adding unwanted difficulties on top of that load can be overwhelming for anyone.’

The special administrators conducted a select tender process for the management of the Kanparrka Store shortly after their appointment. Mai Wiru Regional Stores Council Aboriginal Corporation, an Aboriginal-owned store management company, was selected by an advisory group of members to manage the corporation’s store on a long-term basis.

The special administrators also appointed new bookkeepers to update the corporation’s financial statements and prepare them for audit.

The special administrators have reduced the corporation’s future risk of corporate failure by addressing a range of weaknesses in management and financial arrangements.

‘The corporation’s store is now on a good footing to continue providing essential food supplies to the community, while at the same time remaining community-controlled. All of this has been completed in just over three months.’

The Registrar’s office will monitor the corporation over the next 12 months and also offer governance training for the corporation’s new directors in coming months.

Background
See the Registrar’s media release of 21 December 2016 (ORICMR1617-14).